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London Underground plans 24-hour operation


DavidB-AU

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Also, there was mention on the news this morning that all Underground ticket offices will shut by 2015

 

So does that mean ticketing options are limited to Oyster card and cash or card into a machine?

I used to frequently travel from London Bridge, but very rarely now that I've moved. My £5 and £10 notes used to be spat back from the ticket machine onto the concourse quite often! I hope the machines have improved if the human option is to be removed from the equation.

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There will also be 750 job losses. Not sure how safe some people would feel on the tube at night knowing that there isnt a ticket office open, and that a member of staff is simply "somewhere" in the station....

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There will also be 750 job losses. Not sure how safe some people would feel on the tube at night knowing that there isnt a ticket office open, and that a member of staff is simply "somewhere" in the station....

This is pure media hype. There are a number of stations with no TO already. Numerous (most) stations close TOs for long periods in the day. However, there is always a Station Supervisor on site, and except for smaller stations off-peak, usually Station assistant(s). All stations have complete CCTV coverage, which is monitored by (probably) unseen staff. I work on the Underground, and see this first hand. Personally, with the introduction of Oyster, I feel the TO idea is antiquated as most punters now don't use them to buy tickets, just for queries. I know Oyster is not perfect, there is a need for human assistance, but it is there. The job losses are supposed to be taken up with natural wastage/retirement, with the remaing office staff moved out to public areas. At least this gets away from the staff that do hide away in back offices when they are supposed to be available - and yes it does happen.

 

Stewart

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One good thing about no ticket offices is that there will no longer be any ticket office queues.  The slightly worrying aspect of that is where will the queues occur instead - at ticket machines or at barriers?   I do foresee potential problems for tourists and they seem to form an large part of the ticket queues at some UndergrounD stations (Paddington and Kings Cross being prime examples) and where will folk be able to buy Privs - from the ticket machines?

 

Overall looks like a good reason to get an Oyster card for Mrs Stationmaster although we don't visit London very often if we can avoid it  (and I'm alright Jack as I had one of the very first Oystercards being one of the guinea-pigs for the trials before they went on public issue - my only concern is that the automatic annual update has worked when I make my first use of it every year).

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Where will I buy an Oyster card from in future?

 

They can already be bought from most of the ticket machines.

 

I think the idea of this new plan is to get all the people out of the ticket offices and out with the public, which doesn't seem like such a bad idea...

 

It seems like they're trying to transform into the Apple Stores of the railway world!

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THE Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Mike Brown, London Underground (LU) managing director announced on November 21 that 24-hour operation will be introduced at weekends on five Underground lines from 2015.

 

http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/metros/london-underground-plans-24-hour-operation.html

 

Fantastic, our 24 hour city gets 24 hour services :D :D

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You get used to  24 hour service in NYC - 7 days a week.  Includes buses too and Christmas.... Track maintenance gets done.

When I was young BR used to run trains on Christmas Day too. It's called: Service.

 

Best, Pete.

 

I remember the first time I stayed in NYC. First night, couldn't sleep - decided to get up, get dressed and go explore (or get lost, whichever came first). Wandering the streets at 4am, I was able to get a coffee and damn, it was busy! People everywhere and lots of traffic. Central Park quiet though. Strange place (for an Englishman) but still with a place in my heart.

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